First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:
This spot is pretty good. I might go back for the fried chicken bites and perhaps to try the burger, which looked good when it came out to another person’s table.
BETTY
193 Henry St.
New York, NY 10002
Category Archives: American
Pecking House Chicken
First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:
This spot recently opened down by Two Bridges, and I’ve been psyched to try it out.
We got five items; three mains and two sides.
1. The Blackened Chicken Sandwich
This was probably my favorite of all the items. It has a distinctly earthy Mexican flavor to it from the Oaxaca cheese and pickled jalapeños. Absolute banger.
2. Chili Quarter Chicken
I expected this to be wetter, spicier and saltier based on what I’ve seen on Instagram to date, but it was still goo. A bit expensive at $9 without a side, but I’d definitely get it again (perhaps the extra hot version though).
3. Salted Egg Wings
These were delicious. No dipping sauce needed! The batter from the salted yolk comes in nice and crisp, and with the wings being slightly smaller than your typical bar room Buffalo wings, you get a perfect ratio or meat to crisp with every bite.
4. Chicken Salt Fries
These could have used a bit more crisp on them, but they were tasty. Also – not too salty! Nicely seasoned, as a matter of fact.
5. Charred Cukes w/Ginger
These were unique! Charring the cucumber softens them a bit and adds a different flavor profile to them that I’ve never experienced before. The ginger sauce isn’t too pungent, so you still get all that fresh cucumber flavor to cool off from the spicy food between bites.
PECKING HOUSE CHICKEN
83 Henry Street
Shop 1
New York, NY 10002
Red Lion & El Cabron Taqueria
Red Lion is a Bleecker Street bar that’s been around forever. They started offering 50-cent wings on Wednesdays, so me and some buddies took our Zooz bikes out for a ride to check them out.
The wings were pretty good! The best flavor was hot – way better than mild, garlic parm or bbq.
The tacos joint was great. Nice budget friendly tacos at under $5 each, and on Tuesdays they are even cheaper for “Taco Tuesday.”
Here’s a video of the food:
At the end, you can see us grabbing some boilermakers at 169 Bar. $6 beer and a shot!
RED LION
151 Bleecker St.
New York, NY 10012
EL CABRON TAQUERIA
26 Essex St.
New York, NY 10002
Randazzo’s Clam Bar
Randazzo’s is a spot I’ve always heard about but never got a chance to try, until now.
My wife and I were out at Coney Island, and we figured this would be a great spot for lunch after getting sand blasted on the windy beach that day.
We started with the combo platter of fried seafood with their famous spicy red sauce on top. It was awesome.
Really, the seafood is just fine or okay, but it’s the sauce that you really find yourself going back for over and over. So we took some home with us.
We also did their fried oyster and lobster roll sandwiches. Both were “meh” at best. The lobster was a cold lobster salad and not a warm lobster roll.
That said, they are expert with frying shit. The fries and zucchini were great, as was the batter on the oysters and calamari.
I would probably go back again, but I’d stick with the spicy calamari.
RANDAZZO’S CLAM BAR
2017 Emmons Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
The Lions
First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:
This place has been popping up all over Instagram, and once I saw the images of their burger and mortadella sandwich, I knew I had to get in ASAP to try.
We went right when they opened at 5pm on a Saturday, and the place was jammed by 5:30. Apparently everyone had the same idea!
We started with the fried mozzarella and Lions baked potato (with sour cream and an egg yolk).
The baked potato was a game changer. It was so freaking flavorful. We both loved it. As for the mozzarella…
Perfect temperature for stretching! And surprisingly light. Very flavorful.
The burger was 100% perfection. A nice thick aged patty, topped with two slices of American cheese, atop a slice of grilled onion, which helps to protect the beautiful sesame seed bottom bun. Four slices of pickle came on the plate as well. We obviously put them on top.
My pictures sucked, but the interior was a perfect medium rare / medium, which is ideal for this ind of “steakhouse” style burger. This was a killer. On par with Luger or Red Hook Tavern for just $18. For $4 you can get fries with it, and the fries were excellent. Nice and crispy, not too salty. The only down was that they charged us for the side order of fries ($8) rather than the “accompanying” fried ($4). I was wondering why this was such a huge order.
The mortadella sandwich was excellent too. While it ate a bit salty due to the Calabrian chili tapenade, the flavor was out of this world. The pistachio studded mortadella had a ton of porky character, and the blue cheese on this was more like a spread than a crumble or a saucy mess. It worked, though I questioned whether it would when I saw it on the menu.
As you can see, this came with chips. So we had three types of potato with this meal: chips, fries and a baked potato.
Side note: They also make a great martini.
This place is also going to be offering a steak night on Wednesdays for something like $35, and monthly “Beefsteak” meals which will be an all-inclusive price that covers drinks, starters, steak and dessert. I really can’t want to try those!
THE LIONS
132 1st Ave.
New York, NY 10009
The Baroness
First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:
I’ve been meaning to get over to this joint ever since I learned that my guys over at Golden Packing supply the burgers and some other meat proteins here. So I rode up on the Zooz and met with Tyson and Lupe, both Golden gang members, to chow down.
The savage wings are smoked and then fried, so they pack a ton of flavor. The burnt ends bologna was masterful. I’ve always wanted to try smoked BBQ style bologna, and this place definitely has me wanting more. The skillet mac and cheese was really nice. Also smoky and flavorful. The standard “Judith” 6oz burger was perfect. Great crisp on the patty, some caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato, pickles… really nice. I probably could have crushed two of these!
I would definitely go back to try more!
THE BARONESS
47-18 Vernon Blvd.
Queens, NY 11101
Little Maven
First, check out this awesome episode of Around the Hood in 8 Minutes, which features Little Maven.
My chef buddy Josh Capon opened this joint in late November, and I finally got a chance to check it out in the new year. The Cake Dealer’s birthday weekend is always filled with great food, and this was our first stop for the occasion.
We started with some great cocktails (get the Maven 75), and Josh sent over some bites for us to try out that highlight his fun menu.
Whipped Tahini
Tuna Tartare Cannolis (These are AMAZING)
Caesar Cups
The broiled oysters here are fantastic. Very similar to Capon’s famous broiled oysters from Bowery Meat Co.
This sizzling grilled octopus is so tender and tasty. The potatoes were perfectly seasoned and crisp.
We also had a delicious duck confit and mushroom ravioli dish that was on special, but I forgot to snap a pic. You’ll have to watch the video to see it, and to hear Josh explaining how to properly confit duck!
For the mains, we went with the dry aged duck and the steamed black bass in Thai green curry. The duck was one of the most tender and perfectly cooked I’ve had.
Absolutely stunning! It came with turnips and wine poached pears. Rich without being too heavy, which was the same comment I made about the ravioli.
The black bass really stole the show, however.
It came with a crispy rice cake and a mixed herb and green bean salad that were both so damn tasty when mixed with the green curry. It had a kick of spice without being too overpowering. I could eat this every day!
Josh also sent over some really unique and soft miso chocolate chip cookies, as well as a banana split for the birthday girl. Chocolate, vanilla, banana cream and strawberry/raspberry flavored ice creams. Save your appetite for dessert!
I can’t wait to go back and try more of the pasta dishes, and of course the steak frites.
LITTLE MAVEN
30 W 18th St
New York, NY 10011
The Ordinary
Our last meal of 2023 culminated with a seafood blowout in Charleston, at a joint called The Ordinary.
We started with a massive seafood tower, filled with all sorts of delicious raw and cooked goodies.
The best of the tower was probably the peel and eat shrimp, which was a shocker for me.
This oyster slider was superb too. Highly recommend it.
I also liked the smoked mussels here as well.
This clam toast was salty, and it ate more like a panzanella. But I did enjoy it.
This rock shrimp fried rice ate more like couscous or broken rice, and it wasn’t fried at all. That said, it was still very tasty.
For sides, we did the roasted squash and sweet potatoes. I could have passed on these.
Our two main fish dishes were roasted tilefish and mustard crusted flounder. Between these, the flounder was the easy winner. It was the best part of the meal.
This was a pretty good meal overall, and I would definitely recommend it to people heading down to Charleston and looking for good seafood.
THE ORDINARY
544 King St
Charleston, SC 29403
Fig
For our final meal of the trip to Charleston, we went to the often difficult to reserve Fig with a couple that I’m friends with who live nearby. I managed to score a last minute reservation at 9:15pm, and we ended up closing down the joint at close to midnight. It turned out to be our overall best meal of the trip. Let’s get into it…
We started with a bunch of items that we all shared. Broiled oysters aji dolce, chicken liver pate, raw hogfish (similar to snapper) with rice and popcorn (crazy!), lamb bolognese ricotta gnocchi, and wagyu beef tartare.
These were, each of them, all-star level dishes, and I am hard-pressed to pick a favorite among them. I would order each of them again in a heartbeat, but I think I was most surprised by the hogfish. It was so unique, and I’m a sucker for popcorn. The gnocchi was definitely meant to be a main dish, but we shared among the four of us.
For mains, we also went heavy with five dishes. Baked wreckfish, sautéed flounder, mustard crusted swordfish, Berkshire pork milanese and lump crab spaghetti with lemon and bottarga.
Again, everything really incredible. I think, though, what stood out the most to me was the swordfish. The capers and mustard crust really paired beautifully with the medium-rare cooked fish. Loved it!
For dessert, we went with these lemon curd cream puffs, which were really nice.
I highly recommend Fig if you’re in Charleston. Absolutely delicious!
FIG
232 Meeting St
Charleston, SC 29401
Lowland Tavern
This newly opened Charleston joint converts an old downtown townhouse into an elegant bar and restaurant space that serves up some modern American cuisine.
We started with some lighter bites, the tuna crudo (more like poke), and a celery salad.
Both were really nice and fresh, but the celery salad stole the show, of all things.
For entrees, we had a pasta dish consisting of a bolognese style sauce with shells, and grilled triggerfish with collards in broth.
Between these, the fish was the slight winner for me. While the flavor of the pasta sauce was delicious, the pasta itself was overcooked and a little mushy for my liking. The fish was a nice leaner style, tighter muscle flesh type of white fish. It reminded me of chicken breast!
For dessert, we had the banoffee pie, which was an absolute stunner, and easily the best dessert of the trip.
I would definitely go back here on future trips to Charleston, especially for the gorgeous bar in back.
LOWLAND TAVERN
36 George St
Charleston, SC 29401